An analog of the phrase can come from breaching an unwritten code of conduct in war, in which a commanding officer was expected to receive and send back emissaries or diplomatic envoys sent by the enemy unharmed. During the early
Warring States period of China, the concept of chivalry and virtue prevented the executions of messengers sent by opposing sides. In
Ancient Greek theater,
Sophocles' play
Antigone includes the line "no one loves the messenger who brings bad news" or "no man delights in the bearer of bad news" (). In
Euripides' play
The Bacchae, a messenger from
Cithaeron requests the right to freely speak before informing
Pentheus, the mythical
king of Thebes, that the latter's mother has been brainwashed into the
Cult of Dionysus.
Plutarch's
Lives includes a similar sentiment: "The first messenger, that gave notice of
Lucullus' coming was so far from pleasing
Tigranes that, he had his head cut off for his pains; and no man dared to bring further information. Without any intelligence at all, Tigranes sat while war was already blazing around him, giving ear only to those who flattered him". The sentiment that one should not kill the messenger was expressed by
Shakespeare in
Henry IV, Part 2 (1598), and in
Antony and Cleopatra Cleopatra threatens to treat the messenger's eyes as balls when told
Antony has married another, eliciting the response "Gracious madam, I that do bring the news made not the match." The term also applied to a
town crier, an officer of the court who made public pronouncements in the name of the ruling monarch, and often including bad news. Harming a town crier was considered treason. ==Current application==